Guodian, Shenhua merger to cut China's overcapacity

Two of China’s largest state-owned energy companies have submitted a merger proposal to China’s State Council, as the country pushes consolidation among state-owned power generators to cut industrial overcapacity.  

In an energy conference on Wednesday, an executive at China Guodian confirmed the long-expected merger proposal between Guodian and Shenhua Group. If approved by the State Council, the resulting company, National Energy Investment Corporation, will become the world’s largest power utility firm with 226 gigawatts of total installed capacity, according to a note from research firm Wood Mackenzie.

Guodian is one of the big five electricity producers in China, while Shenhua is the country’s largest coal miner...